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Having been a grocery checker, I wouldn't worry about automation replacing factory workers any time soon. You can see how quickly automation has replaced human

Having been a grocery checker, I wouldn't worry about automation replacing factory workers any time soon. You can see how quickly automation has replaced human labor while waiting to buy milk at the grocery store. Or on the other side, our society has people delivering milk directly to the house again. I wonder how long that will be in vogue this time - rehow soon until hipsters start buying cows to personally milk? Robot workers are usually application-specific, while human people after incredibly general. Moving to robot workers is like replacing GPUs with ASICs - this could be excellent if they are designed for the task. Otherwise, your robots will not perform the task well. For instance, the humans can stop checking groceries and sweep the store on a slow day. Self-check robots cannot hold brooms or move around the area.

noitsnot 9y ago
automation at checkouts won't replace the cashier any time soon, you're right. you don't need to spend all of that money on automation when there is zero skill and customers can and will do it themselves.
- deleted 9y ago
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losvedir 9y ago
> You can see how quickly automation has replaced human labor while waiting to buy milk. What do you mean by this? I (and most people I know) go through the self-checkout lanes. My trip to the grocery store from entering, selecting my products, purchasing them, and leaving, never causes me to interact with anyone. Maybe you mean the "behind the scenes" stuff like people stocking the items? I don't know how that works at grocery stores but would be interested to learn.
- stephengillie 9y ago
  This is assuming every store has even bought a self-check station. Many haven't, even though they have been "replacing checker jobs" for over a decade. And stores with self-check still frequently require human interaction for most exceptions: - The bag you brought is too heavy and confuses the bag sensor. - Buying age-restricted items. - Item not in system. - Coupons.
  - toyg 9y ago
    Yeah it's more of a slight difference in scale than complete replacement. Where before you needed 10 checkers for 10 tills, you now need 1 or 2 - and likely increased security to monitor people "accidentally slipping" stuff in their own bags.

noitsnot 9y ago

automation at checkouts won't replace the cashier any time soon, you're right. you don't need to spend all of that money on automation when there is zero skill and customers can and will do it themselves.

deleted 9y ago
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losvedir 9y ago

> You can see how quickly automation has replaced human labor while waiting to buy milk. What do you mean by this? I (and most people I know) go through the self-checkout lanes. My trip to the grocery store from entering, selecting my products, purchasing them, and leaving, never causes me to interact with anyone. Maybe you mean the "behind the scenes" stuff like people stocking the items? I don't know how that works at grocery stores but would be interested to learn.

stephengillie 9y ago
This is assuming every store has even bought a self-check station. Many haven't, even though they have been "replacing checker jobs" for over a decade. And stores with self-check still frequently require human interaction for most exceptions: - The bag you brought is too heavy and confuses the bag sensor. - Buying age-restricted items. - Item not in system. - Coupons.
- toyg 9y ago
  Yeah it's more of a slight difference in scale than complete replacement. Where before you needed 10 checkers for 10 tills, you now need 1 or 2 - and likely increased security to monitor people "accidentally slipping" stuff in their own bags.